Stamina (2)
Alex left the cave and decided to depart for home. Being that he was punished not to sleep in the house and to not get any food for the entire week, nobody cared where he was as long as he served his sentence. He passed by a river, where he always takes a shower as he's not allowed to use the one at home and dipped himself in the water.
After around thirty minutes of socking in the water, he came out and put on his clothes and went back to the stables. The stables had different sections. There was a section for horses, sheep, goats and pigs. Most of the times he's always sleeping in the horses’ section where it was cleaner. Had he dared to sleep in the other sections, then his life would have been hell.
When he entered the stables, he immediately lay down to rest. Even after resting in the cave in Maza forest, he was still mentally and physically tired. He closed his eyes tightly and began reflecting on the events that occurred the previous night.
'Who was that woman? Or was I just dreaming? No, it felt so real. Mmh, I don't know why but, I felt a sense of familiarity from that woman. Well, that power was insane indeed. I wonder if I can ever get that much power.' He opened his eyes and looked at the ceiling.
'Maybe if I had awakened, dad wouldn't let me be mistreated even at home? Well, even though he doesn't mistreat me, the fact is that, he remains so silent. This is no different from the treatment I receive from the servants that can do nothing even if they want to. This makes me frustrated and angry. Had it not been for the fact that he cared about me during my early years, I would have been hating him as well.’
‘I wonder if I have my home somewhere else or if this is my real home? Well, I think I'll just have to get away from here and try to forge my own path in life. But that will have to wait till I turn fifteen and I am completely done with the training that I am currently undertaking.'
'Well, I guess I am thinking things that are now too far from my grasp. I better find a way to survive the night though. At least I got good food. All I need is an all night long sleep to rest enough so that I can continue training tomorrow.'
Alex closed his eyes and slept. He was truly exhausted that he even forgot to make something to cover himself from the cold at night. Simon who was observing him from a far sighed and waved his hand. Several thin layers of hay were lifted by his mana control and landed on top of Alex who was sleeping like a bag of potatoes.
"I wish I could do better than this. For all you did for me, I don't think there is anything else that can I can use to repay you other than taking care of your son for you. And that I've failed in that too. The siyuation in the family is getting worse as days move on. If Alex doesn’t get out of here sooner or later, then his life is surely going to be troublesome for him. All I can do is train him how to survive. Please forgive me for my incompetence." Simon muttered under his breath before leaving after giving the kid one last look.
.....
"Wow, morning came fast today. Yawn! I better get up and head out for training so I can finish this training for the day." Alex stood up and pushed aside the hay that was on top on him. He clearly didn't remember covering himself at night but all the same, he thanked the one that covered him.
The muscles all over his body ached in that, the moment that he got up, he immediately fell down. He was feeling immense pain as he tried moving. His legs, the ones that he had used for running, were the ones that were experiencing the most pain.
His body felt weak in such a way that, he doubted that he'll be capable of completing today's workout. He stood up through gritted teeth. Again, he was forced to go down. It was only after several attempts that he finally managed to get back to his feet. He then began walking around until his muscles lightened up. Then, he headed towards Maza forest while limping a little as his muscles had yet to return to their peak condition.
Those who saw him limping away thought that he must have received a thorough beating from his step mother or half-brothers. They just hoped that the boy would manage to reach adulthood and be capable of depending on himself. They liked him the most because even when he was still loved, back in the days that he was treated well in the family, he had treated most of them well.
Although he was just small back then, he was completely different from his other arrogant half-siblings. This was something that made them have a favorite impression on Alex. Though, they could do nothing for him now other than empathizing with him.
Alex didn't care what they thought of him and continued on his journey towards Maza forest at a steady pace. After forty minutes, he finally arrived at the edge of the forest and decided to do some more stretches to ease the tension his body was in. Ten minutes later, he began jogging around the area he was assigned to go around for two laps.
Today, the two laps became harder than the previous day which he ended collapsing again just like the previous day. Simon took him to the same cave and fed him a recovery portion before leaving him a backpack as usual. He just hoped that Alex would be able to endure this training till the end. This was actually a training for not only stamina but also perseverance and a test of his will and determination.
....
Three weeks floated by just like that and Alex had adapted to running around at a pace of at least 15km/hr. This was indeed a great improvement when you take into account the way the forest drained his energy. Currently, his leg muscles had began developing due to the training and the balanced diet that he now receives during training.
He was now frequently eating the meat of the martial monsters that had boosted his physique as well as making it easy for him to train.
His punishment had already been lifted and he had gone back to his normal residence. Although life was somehow better, that didn't mean that problems ended. He was still abused but somehow minimally. He received one meal a day at home, and that was supper.
Of course, he had no breakfast but lunch was what he ate in the forest. It was indeed plentiful enough to allow him to do all his training the following day even after consuming the small portion he receives at home. But, Simon was doing a lot by giving him the meat.
"Well done, Alex. You’ve indeed done well so far. So, it is time for you to advance in your stamina training. So, now, you'll have to lift the log over there and go for ten laps. Make sure not to put your hands down until you are done with the laps. The log weighs five kilograms, so, get going." Simon was once again here to ensure training progressed.
"Yes elder," replied Alex as he went to where the log was and lifted it up in the air and began jogging. He went with the usual pace that he'd gotten used to in the previous three weeks. At first, things were just normal but when he continued going round, things began being hard. His breathing haggard and his arms felt so week that he really wanted to drop the log down. The training was indeed hellish.
Days came to weeks and weeks summed to a month of training. Every time he got used to the weight, it was added until he went back to struggling. Throughout this time, Alex experienced what it meant to train. This was basically a training for his endurance. And, it was working as he was now way better than he was the previous month.
After this, he was to train how to remain under water without breathing for a certain period of time several times, which kept increasing as he continued progressing. He always dipped himself in the same river where he usually took a shower. Every day, he kept breaking the previous record by one or two seconds. Though, this was not consistent as sometimes, he might only extend the time by a few microseconds.
After this, he was given some bracelets that were enchanted with runes. These always increased weight in such a way that, the one putting them on would always feel like he or she's carrying around 20 kg. This will always increase as one's strength increases. The weight was evenly distributed in the body in such a way that it was always the body that felt heavy.
This was way better than carrying a log on his shoulders as this enabled him to improve his overall body fitness. As such, even when his stamina and endurance increased, his other attributes followed suit, though at a lower pace than the others.
After four long months of training, stamina training had come to an end. Alex's muscles had built up in such a way that he didn't look like a slim boy like before. Thanks to the meat that he always received from Simon, he managed to improve well. Now, he no longer looked as scrawny as he was four months ago.
"Congratulations on completing the stamina training. Now, you've got one week break before we continue to another type of training. So, better be prepared when that time comes," said Simon with a smile.
"Thank you elder, I'll make sure to be ready when time comes," replied Alex with his usual calmly. He had gotten used to the training in that, whatever was happening back at home no longer affected him that much. Now, he was always looking forward to having a great ability to do more than just sit back and enjoy the beating.
"Okay. Your training will be continuous. So, you'll have to stay where you'll be training. I'll talk with your father so you can get the permission. For now, you can go back and relax," Simon said.
"Yes elder, have a nice day." Alex replied as he left the forest heading home. Simon watched him go with a smile. He was truly impressed by Alex's performance. He hoped that he'll continue the same way till the conclusion of the training. "Well, time to get to this excuse of a father to accept to Alex's training plan." Simon then rushed from the forest, heading straight to the patriarch's house.
A/N; Thanks for getting to this point guys. let's continue supporting the novel if you like it.
NOTE: The novel editing is in progress.